Metro foreclosure notices fall in June to lowest level in 30 months
Foreclosure notices in metro Atlanta fell 23 percent in June from May — to the lowest level since December 2008, according to new data released Monday by Equity Depot.
The 7,374 notices represent a 33 percent drop from June 2010, Kennesaw-based Equity Depot said.
Barry Bramlett
For the first half of the year, notices in the 13-county metro area declined 8 percent compared to the same period last year, which set a metro record. June was the fourth consecutive month when the number of foreclosure notices was less than during the same month in 2010.
“The number of new listings are decreasing substantially, which can only be seen as good news,” Barry Bramlett, president of Equity Depot, said in a statement.
In fact, he said, about two-thirds of the foreclosure notices published this month were for properties that had been advertised for foreclosure previously. Notices printed this month are for auctions on the courthouse steps set for next month. But, as in past months, lenders and borrowers can negotiate a reprieve that postpones or eliminates a repossession.
Despite June’s decline, foreclosure notices still remain at a very high level.
“Until the glut of bank-owned properties clears out, I don’t see any improvement in home prices … as most studies still show them declining,” Bramlett said.
For the fourteenth straight month, Gwinnett led the pack with 1,477 notices. Fulton was in its traditional second spot with 1,363. It was followed by DeKalb (1,164), Cobb (895) and Clayton (603).
While residential foreclosures represent the overwhelming majority of notices, Bramlett said “commercial foreclosures are continuing at a high level and this, as much as anything, speaks to a slow economy.”
On a related note, help for metro homeowners trying to avoid foreclosure will be available later this week. If you’re interested, here’s a link to information I previously posted on the details.
- Henry Unger, The Biz Beat
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45 comments Add your comment
Me
June 13th, 2011
5:12 am
First
Joe Biden
June 13th, 2011
5:35 am
THE STIMULUS IS WORKING !!!
francisberry44
June 13th, 2011
5:41 am
Are you are small business owner? like myself, Refi or anything is very difficult for us. It is not easy now a days but still I was able to do refinance with “123 Refinance” where you can find the rates with out SSN! they will help you
Toby W
June 13th, 2011
6:51 am
Maybe this is due to the fact that the banks are 3 to 5 years behind in processing their existing foreclosures??? Quit spinning it! Home values will continue to drop the next 3 to 5 years.!!
Henry Unger
June 13th, 2011
7:07 am
Toby W — You may be right. But there has been a significant decline over the past four months after several years of a record-setting pace. The numbers seem to be going in the right direction — at least for now.
Metfan Lou
June 13th, 2011
8:04 am
I pay my mortgage every month but the gov’t is screwing this up bad. At the very beginning the folks with jobs when the mortgages adjusted to double in some cases and knocked these homeowners down , the gov’t should have taken those mortgages and given the homeowner an opportunity to refinance at a current rate to a 40 year mortgage with the option of knocking it down to 30 years at no cost whjen the economy improved. I believe this was a simple solution that would have kept millions in their homes ans saved neighborhoods. The gov’t wanted to save the banks and just look where that got us!
Buzz G
June 13th, 2011
8:10 am
Toby is right. Quit spinning it! The damage that liberalism and a big government spending crazily have done to our economy is probably fatal.
We are Greece, only with our own currency. The mainstream press just has not yet accepted that fact. There is no way we are going to stop the spending in time to stop the destruction of the dollar.
There will be further declines in housing this year. There are just too many foreclosures yet to come. And too few people holding jobs which can support a mortgage. The only one who is hiring is McDonalds, and you are not going to be able to pay a $150K mortgage on a hamburger flippers salary. And most businesses just are not hiring because they have been spooked by Obamacare and what it will do to them.
The end is near.
Chris
June 13th, 2011
8:19 am
How is that hope and change crap working for you all now?
Dave57
June 13th, 2011
8:19 am
Gee, Buzz, better pack up and move to Ecquador quick!
Silverchief
June 13th, 2011
8:20 am
There are not many left to foreclose on…..
Mary
June 13th, 2011
8:37 am
Is that why there is 67 pages off them on AJC and my house has declined another 10K in value in a month? Really, the economy is doing so good right, is that why my husband lost his job again for the fourth time in three years? I have a degree and can’t get a call for working at Kroger in the same time? Really things are better? Go to Washington to spin this CRAP!!
Buzz G
June 13th, 2011
8:44 am
Dave57,
You obviously are not paying attention. Ecuador is run by a leftist who could be Obama’s brother. Their economy is worse than ours. I’d rather head to Australia, New Zeeland or even Germany. But if you like South America, both Columbia and Brazil have strong free market economies.
Mr. H. Jublome
June 13th, 2011
8:47 am
I ma going to lose my house and you are going to lose your house. We are all doomed and it is the fault of liberalism.
The US government needs to go back to the gold standard. If you have any money left after the liberal’s recession and after the government takes their cut (at the end of a gun), buy the only thing that has real value:
mark
June 13th, 2011
8:56 am
My CEO got a raise this year. There is nothing wrong if the economy, when you are rich!! I don’t think my liberal thoughts of freedom have much to do with the economy. But we could Tax pot, then we will have some new tax revenue and reduce law enforcement, court cost and prison costs. Legalize it!
Lt Col Razorback
June 13th, 2011
9:06 am
Me –THE STIMULUS IS NOT WORKING!! I bought my 4 bedroom/3 bathroom house in N. DeKalb County in 1998 for $179,500. By 2008, it appraised at $315,000, giving me a huge equity amount! But then, I foolishly refinanced my original mortgage to use the equity to pay off an auto loan, a few credit cards, and to pay for many property improvements (a new driveway, new gutters, new windows, new roof, new hardwood floors, etc.). Now my mortgage balance is $280,000 (give or take a few thousand), but my house appraised for only $225,000, despite the $ thousands in upgrades/improvements, and when I tried to refinance again to lower my monthly mortgage payment to less than $2,100 per month, I wasn’t able to refinance at all and I’m, stuck with the large monthly payment, just at the time I want to retire! Until housing prices rebound to something approximating the values they had before the housing market “tanked”, there is no way anyone can honestly say, “THE STIMULUS IS WORKING”.
RGB
June 13th, 2011
9:34 am
Buzz G is right: We are Greece.
The government will accelerate printing money rendering whatever you’ve saved worth much less. Many people will never be able to retire.
President Obama and the Democrats didn’t start this crisis, but they’ve sure accelerated it at warp speed. It is time to solve the problem and quit defending the indefensible.
Give business people assurance about the future (reducing regulatory burden + reducing costs including both taxes and ObamaCare) and they will do what they have always done: grow the economy. We need a pro-growth agenda at the national level and the current crop of folks is hell-bent on insuring we don’t have one.
Patrick
June 13th, 2011
9:37 am
Housing prices will never rebound to the before crash values, Lt Col Razorback. Sorry you got sucked into the whole “house as an investment” scam.
jp
June 13th, 2011
9:39 am
lol you got it wrong all of you that says the STIMULUS NOT WORKING IT DID FOR ME AND MANY OTHER HARD WORKING PEOPLE , I ALSO RECALL READING ABOUT HOW YOU STATED THAT PEOPLE BUY MORE HOUSE THAN THEY SHOULD , SOUND LIKE THE SHOE ON YOUR FOOT NOW UMM AND WITH THE COST FACTOR OR FOOD, GAS, LIGHTS, WATER AND CITY AND CO, SCHOOLS, EVERTHING YOU CAN THINK OF THAT NEED MORE MONEY WE ALL PAYING EXTRA FOR NOTHING OR LITTLE, COME ON PEOPLE BLAME WHERE IT SHOULD BE, NOT ON WHAT IT IS NOT, DID YOUR PAY CHECK GET SMALLER OR BIGGER MINE DID NOT , DO I STILL HAVE TO FACE MORE CUTS AT HOME YES I DO AND WHERE IS THE MONEY GOING TO COME FROM ASK YOU, FROM WHAT I BRING HOME. OH PLEASE, IF YOU MAKE MORE THAN 30,000.00 A YEAR, SHUT UP AND MAKE IT HAPPEN, I AM LIVING WELL WITH LESS THAN THAT AND MAKING IT HAPPEN AND STILL HAVING TO PAY MY BILLS AND THANKS GOD I AM LIVING WELL, NOT GOOD AS I SHOULD BUT THANK GOD AGAIN WE ARE DOING OK, IF YOU DO NOT NEED IT THEN CUT THAT SERVICE OFF THAT YOU ARE NOT USING AND PAYING FOR CUT YOUR COST. AND THE GOV SHOULD TOO. HAVE A GOOD DAY
DollarDawg43
June 13th, 2011
9:43 am
It will be more than 3-5 years before home prices recover. I am a former banker; I lost my job wen my former employer executed it’s THIRD round of cutbacks last year. This problem started in 2006 but none of us saw it. Unfortunatey it was Fall-2007 before any lenders realized what a mess they had on their hands.
Five years later we are still experiencing depressed values and, while the pace of residential foreclosures has slowed, they are still occuring at an alarming rate and the number commercial foreclosures continues to increase.
This problem cuts accross all idealogies, politics and business perspectives. The time for finger pointing is long past. Until the banks, investors, brokers and (unfortunately) the government truly takes the problems of main street seriously, the downward spiral will only continue.
The problem can be fixed but it will take all parties involved bearing a substantial amount of pain. Unfortunately it is human nature to try to avoid that and let someone else bear the brunt of it.
My advice: Do whatever it takes. I’m almost 50 and I was forced to change careers after being out of work for ten months. Not something I would have chosen at my age but it beats sitting around worrying about my future and complaining all the time.
Republican Greed
June 13th, 2011
9:43 am
I just wanted to take time to thank the Bush-Cheney Administration
for the “Great Recession” and the Housing Market Depression.
RGB
June 13th, 2011
9:43 am
An “lol”, a depressed caps lock key, and the ability to be oblivious to all external factors.
WHAT A COMBO!
I’m hittin’ easy street on mud tires.
RGB
June 13th, 2011
9:44 am
“Greed” couldn’t explain his assertion nor does he offer any solutions.
Excuses don’t solve problems.
Mr. Bill
June 13th, 2011
9:47 am
Im in the foreclosure business for the last 11 years here in Atl, the only reason the numbers are down are because lenders are double & triple checking the paperwork & are holding back from releasing the almost 2 mill homes they are holding, it has nothing to do with the amount of homes being foreclosed on going down, they’re just giving owners more time to try rework the loans!
Republican Greed
June 13th, 2011
9:57 am
The former banker, DollarDawg43 is correct,
the problems started in 2006 with the Bush-Cheney boys totally wrecking the economy and then bailing out the thugs who were too BIG to fail.
Crawford, Texas
June 13th, 2011
10:06 am
`
George W. Bush was the worst President since Herbert Hoover.
.
Mr. H. Jublome
June 13th, 2011
10:14 am
You boobs who parrot “we are Greece” have pretty pathetic. The US’s cost of debt is lower than it was before the recession and it has gone down dramatically this year – indicating the market’s faith in US debt obligations. The US’s GDP to debt ratio as well as the GDP to deficit ratio are no where near that of Greece or any of the PIGS.
Say something besides parroting the words of your AM radio overlords.
DollarDawg43
June 13th, 2011
10:19 am
It was bigger than just Bush-Cheney. The problem was two-fold ad very complicated.
To begin with, there were HUGE investment brokerage houses on Wall Street who were bundling loans in large pools and selling them as mortgage backed securities. This was a very popular investment because the prevailing wisdom was that the underlying asset, real estate, would always increase in value. As such, demand for mortgage loans sky-rocketed because the investment guys were getting filthy rich on premiums earned through the sale of these securities.
Next, to meet that demand, brokers and mortgage lenders began creating new programs for people, who otherwise would not qualify, could obtain financing. This meant more loans and bigger pools.
Along the way these investment houses and the mortgage bankers were donating the absolute maximum to both Republican and Democratic parties and candidates. It didn’t matter who we elected, they were bought and paid for by the time they got there. Both parties are equally guilty here; the donations were buying regulation (or the lack thereof) for years. My post was not meant to attack former President Bush or any individual politician or party. The sad truth is that they were all in it together, along with big business and the greed that ruled the day.
MRH
June 13th, 2011
10:29 am
Republican Greed has no idea what he/she is talking about. Much of the lending did occur during the W. Bush administration, but it was the policies set forth by the Clinton administration that started the subprime mess by letting everyone obtain a mortgage for homes they could not afford. Barney Frank and his “partner” (yes you heard me right) over at FM are much more to blame than Bush. Bush did try to alert congress but they wouldn’t listen because the dems were in control at the time.
Illegal immigrants were able to purchase homes, so what does that tell you? Are there going to be more foreclosures when they leave due to the new tougher illegal immigrant laws? When is that part of all this going to exposed and made public.
The banks did not see this coming. Obama forced all banks to take bailout money whether they needed it or not. As for customers, DollarDawg43 can confirm (becuase i so it in lending with my own eyes) but consumers demanded many of these toxic loans because the government allowed it, if they couldn’t get a loan from Bank A then Bank B would give it to them. If no bank would give them a loan then the customers threatened lawsuits and the banks caved. That is government intervention for you.
The people that are being hurt the most are those of us that have been paying our mortgages. We have lost more value in our homes and that it the worst part. Good people will start walking away if nothing is done to help us. The value of my home is supposed less than it cost to build it, how insane. The cost to rebuild the exact home if disaster struck would be a heck of alot more than it is worth.
My neighbor down the street has benn in “foreclosure” for over 18 months. They are eventually going to loose it but are hanging on because the bank does not want or need it. I am glad the bank is making an attempt, but in the end I know I and other good homeowners will be the ones to suffer.
If values don’t start holding firm, good people are going to panic and this mess will spiral out of control. Very scary situation, this article gives people a false sense of hope.
Michael Moore
June 13th, 2011
10:31 am
How about those complaining that this is Greece or expecting the worst from our “over-spending” government – hop on a plane/boat & F*****G LEAVE … to a country or place where the goverment is stronger and the economy is better! If you didn’t know, this is a free country … TO LEAVE!
Someone attempts to point out “the light at the end of the tunnel” and you guys get on a soap box with a bunch of hot A** air.
Get a life … enjoy the weather & go take the kids to the park, cut your tall A** grass before you make the neighborhood look bad, Finish that project you left in-completed since XMAS (2009). Tell your spouse or mate how good they look as they head off to work, wash the dogs & clean the hair off the furniture … AND when it’s time to vote, support the candidate that best represents YOU. If they lose, eat the loss & move on. Quit F******G belly-aching!!!
Just Because
June 13th, 2011
10:39 am
Always fun to remember that people with a second mortgage could just stop paying on it if the home value falls below 1st mortgage’s value b/c the second one doesn’t have the value to attach a lien to.
And no that “drop in foreclosures” is from banks having to put the process on hold going through and reconfirming everything they were doing in the foreclosure process to avoid further lawsuits.
Wayne
June 13th, 2011
11:27 am
The HAMP program is a disaster and never addressed the unemployed who lost jobs with no fault of their own. It’s a reflection of the Obama Administration that sat by sidelines doing nothing as the carnage started. We have to take Ron Paul serious, like him or not, he is right on with the economy and other issues.
Buzz G
June 13th, 2011
11:33 am
Mr. H. Jublome,
You need to read up a little more than the AJC financial section. The reason that interest rates are so low and US Bonds are selling well is that the US Federal Reserve is buying somewhere in the neighborhood of 75 to 85% of the bonds being issued. This program is called Quantitative Easing 2 and will end at the end of this month. Then you are going to see bond prices skyrocket and the cost of servicing our enormous national debt is going to jump.
To those of you still blaming George W. Bush, you are correct in that he had a hand in this mess and deserves much criticism. But when it comes to crazy spending, his firecrackers cannot compare to Obama’s nukes.
say what?
June 13th, 2011
12:07 pm
If Obama can be blamed for all this mess, then what does that really say about the US economy? Or do you finally see that big business, banks, and congress have been playing a shell game over the life of HUDs existence? Most of htese entities needed to look good on paper, as we have been told to invest in mutual funds,IRA,etc who would then invest in these bad mortgages and banks.
Quite laying blame at the feet of ONE person, because we were all greedy and happy when our 401s, investments, and IRAs were making money for us.
Padre
June 13th, 2011
12:45 pm
A house on my street has been in foreclosure for over a year. The occupants still live there, squatters now. They do nothing to maintain the property. They only mow the grass when the homeowners association sends them a letter. Thank you Community Reinvestment Act for bringing these scumbags into my neighborhood.
Zane Smith's Teeth
June 13th, 2011
1:00 pm
@Buzz G
I find it interesting that you listed Austraila and Germany as countries you would rather go live in. You may want to check their healthcare as they have FULLY NATIONALIZED GOVERNMENT HEALTHCARE and have for decades. What??? Socialized Medicine and they are doing better economically than we are??? How can this be?? My talk radio never explained that to me!!.
Our government has and has had (50 years+) an addiction to overspending. Sorry folks, it’s not just the black man in office. It’s gone on for generations. Rondald Regan had his famous tax cut in the early 80’s…then guess what he did? He raised taxes 7 times over the next 6 years because he realized that he cut too much. You cannot simply cut spending without raising taxes at some point. If you did, we would be living in Ecuador because all the amenities we enjoy (or used to enjoy) like good roads, schools, parks, police, fire, etc.. will be gone.
Everyone say it with me…”time to raise taxes AND cut spending”…
Enough already
June 13th, 2011
1:13 pm
“Liberalism” is the not the cause of our economic collapse. Deregulation (fostered by BOTH major parties) got us into this mess. And the bank/Wall Street bailouts were started under the Bush admin. and continued by Obama admin. There is plenty of blame to go around – but please notice that blaming isn’t getting us anywhere but deeper in debt. If y’all really love this country, you would stop spouting sophomoric talking points and actually get involved in the political process by VOLUNTEERING your time to a campaign you believe in or at the least sending multiple emails to your reps to tell them how you feel and what, exactly you want fixed and how. There is a whole lot of posturing on these boards, but no solutions.
Mr. H. Jublome
June 13th, 2011
1:19 pm
Buzz G: This program is called Quantitative Easing 2 and will end at the end of this month. Then you are going to see bond prices skyrocket and the cost of servicing our enormous national debt is going to jump.
Genius! Thanks for letting me in on this big secret that will turn the treasury market upside down. There is no way the market has priced this huge surprise into treasury prices! although I haven’t looked, treasury prices have certainly been going up and treasury yields down as we approach this top secret date. The 10-year must be skyrocketing in yield if “85% to 75%” of the buyers are leaving the market!!!
There will be a financial bonanza for treasury-shorts. And of course GOLD!!! The dollar is worthless!!!!
Original Name!
June 13th, 2011
1:28 pm
H. Jublome: I bet you worship Jim Kramer and CNBC…..tool…..
Mr. H. Jublome
June 13th, 2011
1:59 pm
Original Name!, you really hurt my feelings with your mean name calling’.
N
June 13th, 2011
2:09 pm
Decline makes sense if you consider there are no net job losses ocurring anymore.
Liberls R Foolish
June 13th, 2011
2:17 pm
“Liberalism” is the not the cause of our economic collapse …
Oh, yes it is! Our country is becoming more and more liberal and socialism is a way to give the poor a way to own homes. Illegals have as many rights if not more than the average citizen and they can life off taxpayer funded enititlements. How can anyone say with a straight face that liberalism didn’t cause the collapse to happen when it did.
@ Michael Moore – you sound just like his liberal royalness. You are part of the problem.
Liberals cannot be part of the solution because they are the ones that started this whole debacle. You can’t take wealth, you have to earn it. The recession just proved that!
“Deregulation (fostered by BOTH major parties) got us into this mess.”
The government has been pulling the shots with the banks and financial institutions, telling the banks for decades who they had to lend money to. Yeah, let’s let illegal buy homes! Is that the kind of “deregulation” you are talking about?
futurist
June 13th, 2011
2:25 pm
does that mean the recession is over??/ YES!!!
Michael
June 13th, 2011
9:34 pm
Interesting that the former banker above says no one saw it in 2006. Well, the bankruptcy lawyers saw it with the advent of the 100% loans, the 125% loans, and the 2-28 and 3-27 no interest loans. The subprime mortgage market was unsustainable.
jamesperin
June 14th, 2011
5:28 am
How do you find good refinance rates? I like “123 Refinance”. They gave me the option of selecting various rates with different problems. I choose the lowest rate of 3.29% BTW Remember to call and verify the loan rate. Search online to find them.
Foreclosures in Atlanta drop a fourth straight month « Homes in Atlanta
June 15th, 2011
11:10 am
[...] your judgement for now but keep watching those foreclosure numbers. Here’s a link to the AJC Story [...]